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Crisp forced out of A's lineup with flu bug

Crisp forced out of A's lineup with flu bug

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ANAHEIM -- A's manager Bob Melvin, naturally wanting to play his hot hands during a slow offensive stretch, couldn't do so with all of them Wednesday, as he was forced to rest an ill Coco Crisp just one night after the outfielder plated the tying run that led to a needed win over the Halos.

Crisp, whose hit came amid a 1-for-23 stretch, was still feeling the effects of a flu bug that surfaced Monday.

"I think he's about the same today," Melvin said. "Just watching him go through that yesterday and not eating and so forth, probably not a good idea for him to play today.

"It's always hard to take him out, whether he's swinging well or swinging poorly, because when he's swinging poorly, you expect him to come out of it, and when he's on base, he creates some havoc. He's a guy you expect to come up with hits like that."

With Crisp held out of the lineup for the third game of a four-game set, Jonny Gomes received his first outfield start of the season, playing in left. Entering the day, he was batting just .143 in six games, four of which he started in the DH spot.

"You end up DH'ing all the time and you never really feel like an extended part of it," Melvin said. "You just feel like you're pinch-hitting all the time, and it's nice to get in that flow of the game. If you notice, Jonny does have some energy, and he likes to move around."